December 13, 2004

School Children Join Virtual Expedition to the Pacific

School children and students throughout France, the USA and Mexico will be taking part in a 'virtual expedition' with explorer Jean-Jouis Etienne, when he leads a team of researchers on a four month visit to a tiny uninhabited Pacific atoll.

Using a dedicated satellite link via Washington, the youngsters will be able to join live Internet meetings with the expedition leader using web-meeting software supplied by Marratech. With their normal laptop or PC equipped with a headset and webcam, they will able to take part in live group discussions where they talk and see each other as well as sharing documents and information from the research programme.

Said Camille Fresser, who is responsible for resources, telecommunications and Internet on Expedition Clipperton: "The Marratech software proved ideal for the project because it combines very high quality voice with video and document sharing in very simple to use group web environment and works on PC or Apple Mac. Students with access to the Internet will be able to download it free and join the meetings for home or the classroom."

The expedition is to the remote French possession of Clipperton, more than 1200 km from Acapulco, 2390 km from the Galapagos islands and 4000 km from the Marquises Islands. Jean-Louis Etienne and his team of multi-disciplinary researchers will spend four months there between December and April cataloguing flora and fauna and studying its geological formation and the functioning of its different ecosystems.

The results of 25 planned research projects will allow Clipperton to become an oceanographic observatory for biological, climactic and environmental studies and provide an insight into the ecology of the atoll and the state of vulnerable organisms such as the coral reefs.

Added Camille Fresser: "The Marratech meeting software means students and the press from literally anywhere can interact with Jean-Jouis Etienne and his team helping develop their understanding of science and increasing knowledge of the biodiversity of the oceans."

Jean-Jouis Etienne was the first man to walk alone to the Magnetic North Pole and has led expeditions to Greenland, the Antarctic, the Himalayas and Patagonia. He is a doctor specialising in nutrition and sports biology.

Apple France has provided hardware and software for communication and multimedia. EADS Astrium is providing the 512Kb satellite broadband link to enable the Marratech real time videoconferences, press and TV interviews, and the transmission of photos, videos and images.

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